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The Florida Panthers are a maddening bunch.
When they blow out a team like Anaheim 8-3 like they did last night, one has to wonder why this team is 4-5. Then go back to Tuesday's 5-1 loss to a terrible Canadiens team in Montreal and it makes more sense.
Or does it?
When new head coach Bob Boughner came to town he talked about how the systems would be changing to a more aggressive style. He has also said he would like for this team to stay afloat for the first four to six weeks of the season while these new systems became concrete.
It would seem on the surface there is merit to that thought. Florida's wins are against Tampa, St. Louis, Washington (on the road), and Anaheim. Tampa's only regulation loss is to the Cats. The Blues only have two regulation losses. The Panthers are historically terrible in D.C. Anaheim is one of the bigger, tougher teams in the league and the Panthers handled them just fine.
So what is the catch? Why can Florida look so dominant one night and then erratic the next?
If you pay attention to the armchair coaches on Twitter, many are screaming at the top of their lungs to separate Keith Yandle and Aaron Ekblad as the #1 defensive pairing. Despite Ekblad's improving play they are giving up a ton of shots. In the first few games of the year both players were beaten badly by speed on the rush, battles on the boards, or trying terrible passes attempting to clear their own zone.
Another sensitive issue for the fans is the curious, frequent changes in line combinations. I feel there isn't much there as this is simply the coaching staff continuing to learn about their players and finding the right chemistry.
To be fair to the critics, the Panthers are a few posts/crossbars hit by their opponents from being 2-7. Yes that's part of the game, but to this point the Panthers are definitely a work in progress defensively.
Opposing forwards often have too much time and space entering the Panther zone, and there have been way too many penalties putting too much pressure on the 2nd worst penalty kill in the league.
Not every game showcases Florida's weaknesses. As with the Anaheim game they played relatively solid throughout. But it's the Jekyll & Hyde nature of this team that has the natives restless. From night to night the Panthers could be on the receiving or giving end of a blowout.
When they have the Boughner and Co. style of play working, it is different than in year's past. It is more north-south. The forechecking is noticeably more aggressive. The high speed of the team is on full display.
With each passing week one would hope there are fewer defensive breakdowns, fewer odd man rushes against, fewer shots against, and fewer penalties taken. That is the plan at least as the coaching staff and players get on the same page to move forward as a cohesive unit.
If Florida was 2-7 there would be cause for a little panic, but they have shown enough against good teams that it is a matter of time before they put a 6-7 game win streak together to get them back to where they are expected.
The most negative supporters of this team will say this team isn't capable of such a run, but there is too much talent on this roster to be denied. Mid-November is when this team should be firing on all cylinders. At this rate, Boughner's hope to stay afloat until then should be fulfilled.
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